Consumer requirement for fewer wires connecting their home entertainment systems is driving up the demand for wireless active speakers. In order to achieve the best audio quality from high end active speakers, adoption of alternative technologies can improve performance; in this context, digital active crossovers can be shown to make a significant contribution.

Current wireless active speakers consist of four elements in the signal path before the drive unit; receiver, DAC, amplifier and crossover. The receiver may be Bluetooth running a high performance codec. The amplifier could be a conventional analogue input class AB type to ensure a high audio quality with high a performance DAC at its input. The final element in the signal path is a passive crossover network.

Alternatively, utilising high performance Class D amplifiers, efficiency savings can make direct driving woofer and tweeter a reality. If the Class D amplifier features a digital input, the availability of DSP resources can facilitate the implementation of high performance digital crossovers which can offer substantial advantages over their passive counterparts.

While wireless speakers would certainly be a lot more convenient than putting in adequate wires for connecting wired speakers, I have always regarded wireless speakers as a poor substitute for cdorrect wiring. Of course, those who sell them will certainly challenge me on that, what else could they possibly do? And those who seek to validate their choice, likewise.